Physical activity, academic and developmental measures in older primary school-children:A principal components analysis

Relationships between physical activity variables, developmental measures, socio-economic status, academic test scores, perceptual-motor tests and gender were examined for 261 year-six primary school students (137 females) with mean age = 12.3 years, SD = 0.3. Characteristics of child development were examined to identify those aspects most weighted towards academic performance. An exploratory principal components analysis with varimax rotation was undertaken. Principal components analysis showed that 59% of the variance in the data-set could be explained by four sub-types. Scores for perception of verticality of a rod against a tilted frame and for frontal plane semi-tandem dynamic postural stability loaded with scores for reading, writing, numeracy and socio-economic status on the first sub-type called the “Academic-Cognitive” component accounted for 22.24% of total variance with an eigenvalue of 3.3. Other components with Eigenvalues > 1 were “Pubescent Development”, “Fitness, Strength and Body Mass” and “Physical Activity and Motor Coordination”. The grouping of perceptual-motor and postural coordination tests with academic scores suggests possibilities for activities having synergy with academic performance and suggests further investigation to ascertain the extent of the associations

What is orthopaedic triage? A systematic review

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Complex and chronic disease is placing significant pressure on hospital outpatient departments. Novel ways of delivering care have been developed recently and are often described as ‘triage’ services. This paper reviews the literature pertaining to definitions and descriptions of orthopaedic/musculoskeletal triage processes, in order to provide information on ‘best practice’ to assist health care facilities. METHOD: A comprehensive open-ended search was conducted using electronic databases to identify studies describing models of triage clinics for patients with a musculoskeletal/orthopaedic complaint, who have been referred to hospital outpatient clinics for a surgical consultation. Studies were critically appraised using the McMaster quality appraisal tool and ranked using the National Health and Medical Research Council hierarchy of evidence. A thematic analysis of the definitions, processes and procedures of triage described within the literature was undertaken. RESULTS: 1930 studies were identified and 45 were included in the review (including diagnostic and evaluative research). The hierarchy of evidence ranged from I to IV; however, the majority were at low levels of evidence and scored poorly on the critical appraisal tool. Three broad themes of triage were identified: presence of a referral, configuration of the triage (who, how and where) and the aim of triage. However, there were significant inconsistencies across these themes. CONCLUSIONS: This systematic review highlighted the need for standardization of the definition of triage, the procedures of assessment and management and measures of outcome used in orthopaedic/musculoskeletal triage to ensure best-practice processes, procedures and outcomes for triage clinics

Association between physical functionality and falls risk in community-living older adults

Ageing-related declines in physiological attributes, such as muscle strength, can bring with them an increased risk of falls and subsequently greater risk of losing independence. These declines have substantial impact on an individual’s functional ability. However, the precise relationship between falls risk and physical functionality has not been evaluated. The aims of this study were to determine the association between falls risk and physical functionality using objective measures and to create an appropriate model to explain variance in falls risk. Thirty-two independently living adults aged 65–92 years completed the FallScreen, the Continuous-Scale Physical Functional Performance 10 (CS-PFP10) tests, and the 12-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-12). The relationships between falls risk, physical functionality, and age were investigated using correlational and multiple hierarchical regression analyses. Overall, total physical functionality accounted for 24% of variance in an individual’s falls risk while age explained a further 13%. The oldest-old age group had significantly greater falls risk and significantly lower physical functional performance. Mean scores for all measures showed that there were substantial (but not significant) differences between males and females. While increasing age is the strongest single predictor of increasing falls risk, poorer physical functionality was strongly, independently related to greater falls risk

Ankle instability effects on joint position sense when stepping across the active movement extent discrimination apparatus

CONTEXT: Individuals with and without functional ankle instability have been tested for deficits in lower limb proprioception with varied results. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether a new protocol for testing participants' joint position sense during stepping is reliable and can detect differences between participants with unstable and stable ankles. DESIGN: Descriptive laboratory study. SETTING: University clinical laboratory. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Sample of convenience involving 21 young adult university students and staff. Ankle stability was categorized by score on the Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool; 13 had functional ankle instability, 8 had healthy ankles. INTERVENTION(S): Test-retest of ankle joint position sense when stepping onto and across the Active Movement Extent Discrimination Apparatus twice, separated by an interim test, standing still on the apparatus and moving only 1 ankle into inversion. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Difference in scores between groups with stable and unstable ankles and between test repeats. RESULTS: Participants with unstable ankles were worse at differentiating between inversion angles underfoot in both testing protocols. On repeated testing with the stepping protocol, performance of the group with unstable ankles was improved (Cohen d = 1.06, P = .006), whereas scores in the stable ankle group did not change in the second test (Cohen d = 0.04, P = .899). Despite this improvement, the unstable group remained worse at differentiating inversion angles on the stepping retest (Cohen d = 0.99, P = .020). CONCLUSIONS: The deficits on proprioceptive tests shown by individuals with functional ankle instability improved with repeated exposure to the test situation. The learning effect may be the result of systematic exposure to ankle-angle variation that led to movement-specific learning or increased confidence when stepping across the apparatus

Validation of an instrumented mouthguard in rugby union—a pilot study comparing impact sensor technology to video analysis

Background: To better understand the biomechanical profile of direct head impacts and the game scenarios in which they occur in Rugby Union, there is a need for an on-field validation of a new instrumented mouthguard (IMG) against the reference standard. This study considers the potential of a combined biomechanical (IMG) and video analysis approach to direct head impact recognition, both of which in isolation have limitations. The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between an instrumented mouthguard and video analysis in detection of direct head impacts in rugby union. Design: Pilot Study - Observational Cohort design Methods: The instrumented mouthguard was worn by ten (3 backs, 7 forwards) professional Rugby Union players during the 2020–21 Gallagher Premiership (UK) season. Game-day video was synchronized with timestamped head acceleration events captured from the instrumented mouthguard. Direct Head Impacts were recorded in a 2 × 2 contingency table to determine sensitivity. Impact characteristics were also collected for all verified head impacts to further the understanding of head biomechanics during the game. Results: There were 2018 contact events that were reviewed using video analysis. Of those 655 were categorized as direct head impacts which also correlated with a head acceleration event captured by the IMG. Sensitivity analysis showed an overall sensitivity of 93.6% and a positive predictive value (PPV of 92.4%). When false positives were excluded due to ball out of play, mouthguard removal or handling after a scoring situation or stoppage, PPV was improved (98.3%). Most verified head impacts occurred in and around the ruck contest (31.2%) followed by impacts to the primary tackler (28.4%). Conclusion: This pilot validation study demonstrates that this IMG provides a highly accurate measurement device that could be used to complement video verification in the recognition of on-field direct head impacts. The frequency and magnitude of direct head impacts derived from specific game scenarios has been described and allows for greater recognition of high-risk situations. Further studies with larger sample sizes and in different populations of Rugby Union players are required to develop our understanding of head impact and enable strategies for injury mitigation.</p

Factors Influencing Team Performance:What Can Support Teams in High-Performance Sport Learn from Other Industries? A Systematic Scoping Review

BACKGROUND: The primary aim of our systematic scoping review was to explore the factors influencing team function and performance across various industries and discuss findings in the context of the high-performance sport support team setting. These outcomes may also be used to inform future research into high-performance teamwork in sport. METHODS: A systematic scoping review of literature published in English since 2000 reporting team-based performance outcomes and included a performance metric that was ‘team outcome based’ was conducted using search of the Academic Search Ultimate, Medline, Business Source Ultimate, APA PsycInfo, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, and Military database (ProQuest) using the terms: ‘team’, ‘function’ OR ‘dysfunction’, ‘Perform*’ OR ‘outcome’. RESULTS: Application of the search strategy identified a total of 11,735 articles for title and abstract review. Seventy-three articles were selected for full-text assessment with the aim to extract data for either quantitative or qualitative analysis. Forty-six of the 73 articles met our inclusion criteria; 27 articles were excluded as they did not report a performance metric. Eleven studies explored leadership roles and styles on team performance, three studies associated performance feedback to team performance, and 12 studies explored the relationship between supportive behaviour and performance. Team orientation and adaptability as key figures of team performance outcomes were explored in 20 studies. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings identified 4 key variables that were associated with team function and performance across a variety of industries; (i) leadership styles, (ii) supportive team behaviour, (iii) communication, and (iv) performance feedback. High-performance teams wishing to improve performance should examine these factors within their team and its environment. It is widely acknowledged that the dynamics of team function is important for outcomes in high-performance sport, yet there is little evidence to provide guidance. This inequality between real-world need and the available evidence should be addressed in future research. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40798-021-00406-7

Longitudinal patterns of physical activity in children aged 8 to 12 years: the LOOK study

BACKGROUND Data on longitudinal monitoring of daily physical activity (PA) patterns in youth over successive years is scarce but may provide valuable information for intervention strategies aiming to promote PA. METHODS Participants were 853 children (starting age ~8 years) recruited from 29 Australian elementary schools. Pedometers were worn for a 7-day period each year over 5 consecutive years to assess PA volume (steps per day) and accelerometers were worn concurrently in the final 2 years to assess PA volume (accelerometer counts (AC) per day), moderate and vigorous PA (MVPA), light PA (LPA) and sedentary time (SED). A general linear mixed model was used to examine daily and yearly patterns. RESULTS A consistent daily pattern of pedometer step counts, AC, MVPA and LPA emerged during each year, characterised by increases on school days from Monday to Friday followed by a decrease on the weekend. Friday was the most active and Sunday the least active day. The percentage of girls and boys meeting international recommendations of 11,000 and 13,000 steps/day respectively on a Monday, Friday and Sunday were 36%, 50%, 21% for boys and 35%, 45%, 18% for girls. The equivalent percentages meeting the recommended MVPA of >60 min/day on these days were 29%, 39%, 16% for boys and 15%, 21%, 10% for girls. Over the 5 years, boys were more active than girls (mean steps/day of 10,506 vs 8,750; p<0.001) and spent more time in MVPA (mean of 42.8 vs 31.1 min/day; p<0.001). Although there was little evidence of any upward or downward trend in steps/day from age 8 to 12 years, there was a trend toward lower MVPA, LPA and a corresponding increase in SED from age 11 to 12 years. CONCLUSION A weekly pattern of PA occurred in children as young as age 8 on a day by day basis; these patterns persisting through to age 12. In addition to supporting previous evidence of insufficient PA in children, our data, in identifying the level and incidence of insufficiency on each day of the week, may assist in the development of more specific strategies to increase PA in community based children